tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405853714980422532024-03-13T09:00:44.010-04:00Be-More Training BlogDan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-44238349673513605102014-01-29T15:30:00.002-05:002014-01-29T15:31:13.509-05:00Rep Fitness Gravity Cast KettlebellsI just received a kettlebell from <a href="http://www.repfitness.com/">Rep Fitness</a> and they are my new recommendation when purchasing a kettlebell. High quality bell at a hard to beat price. Check them out at - http://www.repfitness.com/conditioning/kettlebells/rep-kettlebellsDan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-33565602680936245002011-12-27T09:25:00.002-05:002011-12-27T09:42:12.766-05:00Training Seasons<p>Just like you go through different seasons in life you go through different seasons in training as well. Goals will typically dictate how you are currently training but sometimes circumstances outside of your control will shape your training too. </p><p>Take age for an example; young man would and should train differently than an old man. Other factors outside of your control could be time constraints, work and family commitments, injury, or any number of other situations life could throw at your way. Let us be real, there are worse things than adjusting your training or missing a workout. The key is not to abandon your training altogether but to make the appropriate adjustments accordingly.</p><p>In my current situation, which is, new studio, new baby on the way, buying a new house, moving my wife and two kids, things are little bit hectic (to say the least). It's not that I don't have the time to train (a favorite excuse used by people who don't like to exercise) but it's not always at the top of my priority list these days. Don't get me wrong, training is a top priority of mine but making enough money to support my family and being there for them trumps a workout. Sometimes I find it hard to dedicate the solid hour that I'd like to on training. So here's what I've been doing...</p><p>As I sit here on the computer (work) I have already once gotten up to stretch and move around a bit (exercise). I plan to take another 5 minutes or so after I finish this paragraph. I think this time I'll do a few squats. What I've found is that although I might not have an unbroken 60 minutes to spend on some hard training, I can easily take 5-10 minutes a half dozen times a day to do *something*. "I don't have enough time" is never a valid excuse for someone who wants it bad enough. You see I know that exercise makes me a more productive person, a happier person, so I will not, I can not, ever, abandon it fully. It's something that I cannot do without.</p><p>[I actually did not make it through that paragraph without getting up and stretching again.]</p><p>Anyway, that's just the season I am in right now; an exercise or two sprinkled in throughout my work day. I get a full workout in when I have the time for it, and I miss the regular training schedule I once had, but I'm not going anywhere and neither is my desire to workout.</p><p>Another thing I've been dealing with which I have been hesitant to accept is injury. I've been going to physical therapy twice a week at <a href="http://www.evolutionsportspt.com/" target="_blank" href="http://www.evolutionsportspt.com">www.evolutionsportspt.com</a>. What started with some minor shoulder pain was exacerbated when I got rear-ended by a teenager on his cell phone. Now my entire right arm hurts! This has put a huge damper on my training and I am not happy about it. Very discouraging. There are many exercises I cannot do without pain. So, I do what I can. And most of the time when I do finally get an hour block to workout, I do my physical therapy exercises. It's not very exciting but I feel better when I do them and worse when I don't do them, yet I feel even worse when I try to work through the pain and do pull ups or bend steel when I am not supposed to. Oh well, just another season I am in.</p><p>I imagine once the baby is born and we're settled into our new house and I am out of pain, hard training will resume. I'll probably have some different goals by then and unless there are any other unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances, I am sure those goals will once again dictate my training. For now, I will continue to do what I can, when I can do it.</p>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-47480180262662519992011-12-27T09:25:00.000-05:002011-12-27T09:42:10.480-05:00Training Seasons<p>Just like you go through different seasons in life you go through different seasons in training as well. Goals will typically dictate how you are currently training but sometimes circumstances outside of your control will shape your training too. </p><p>Take age for an example; young man would and should train differently than an old man. Other factors outside of your control could be time constraints, work and family commitments, injury, or any number of other situations life could throw at your way. Let us be real, there are worse things than adjusting your training or missing a workout. The key is not to abandon your training altogether but to make the appropriate adjustments accordingly.</p><p>In my current situation, which is, new studio, new baby on the way, buying a new house, moving my wife and two kids, things are little bit hectic (to say the least). It's not that I don't have the time to train (a favorite excuse used by people who don't like to exercise) but it's not always at the top of my priority list these days. Don't get me wrong, training is a top priority of mine but making enough money to support my family and being there for them trumps a workout. Sometimes I find it hard to dedicate the solid hour that I'd like to on training. So here's what I've been doing...</p><p>As I sit here on the computer (work) I have already once gotten up to stretch and move around a bit (exercise). I plan to take another 5 minutes or so after I finish this paragraph. I think this time I'll do a few squats. What I've found is that although I might not have an unbroken 60 minutes to spend on some hard training, I can easily take 5-10 minutes a half dozen times a day to do *something*. "I don't have enough time" is never a valid excuse for someone who wants it bad enough. You see I know that exercise makes me a more productive person, a happier person, so I will not, I can not, ever, abandon it fully. It's something that I cannot do without.</p><p>[I actually did not make it through that paragraph without getting up and stretching again.]</p><p>Anyway, that's just the season I am in right now; an exercise or two sprinkled in throughout my work day. I get a full workout in when I have the time for it, and I miss the regular training schedule I once had, but I'm not going anywhere and neither is my desire to workout.</p><p>Another thing I've been dealing with which I have been hesitant to accept is injury. I've been going to physical therapy twice a week at <a href="http://www.evolutionsportspt.com/" target="_blank" href="http://www.evolutionsportspt.com">www.evolutionsportspt.com</a>. What started with some minor shoulder pain was exacerbated when I got rear-ended by a teenager on his cell phone. Now my entire right arm hurts! This has put a huge damper on my training and I am not happy about it. Very discouraging. There are many exercises I cannot do without pain. So, I do what I can. And most of the time when I do finally get an hour block to workout, I do my physical therapy exercises. It's not very exciting but I feel better when I do them and worse when I don't do them, yet I feel even worse when I try to work through the pain and do pull ups or bend steel when I am not supposed to. Oh well, just another season I am in.</p><p>I imagine once the baby is born and we're settled into our new house and I am out of pain, hard training will resume. I'll probably have some different goals by then and unless there are any other unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances, I am sure those goals will once again dictate my training. For now, I will continue to do what I can, when I can do it.</p>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-19666823783766292272011-10-14T13:06:00.002-04:002011-10-14T13:40:06.548-04:00Why Lift Kettlebells?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YAinKGOcW8k/TphsVe6kbAI/AAAAAAAABZI/Noklqj3Cnzw/s1600/why.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 94px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YAinKGOcW8k/TphsVe6kbAI/AAAAAAAABZI/Noklqj3Cnzw/s320/why.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663395647750171650" border="0" /></a><br />Seriously, that's a good enough reason for me, but for those people who are looking for practical reasons to lift kettlebells, here's a few off of the top of my head:<br /><br />Kettlebells develop all around fitness. Whether you are looking to build muscle or burn fat, get stronger or better conditioned, the answer is YES. I could go into all of the nitty-gritty details but its easier to say kettlebell training is both strength and cardiovascular work.<br /><br />Kettlebells are fun. If you've lifted kettlebells before you know this, but then if you have lifted them you wouldn't be reading an article on "why lift kettlebells"? You already know that kettlebells provide an array of exercises for the full body in a dynamic, fast paced, fashion.<br /><br />Kettlebells are convenient. A single piece of equipment that takes up virtually no space and you can do endless exercises with them. You should have a kettlebell sitting by every television in your house so you can do swings during commercial breaks.<br /><br />Kettlebells are efficient. This goes back to the all around fitness thing, but you don't need daily hour long sessions to get a good workout in. 20 minutes is more than enough if you're training properly.<br /><br />Kettlebells are portable. No more missed workouts because you're traveling. Need a change of scenery, no problem! Feel like training outside today, pick your place (I like the beach).<br /><br />I could go on but I just remembered I already wrote this article like 5 years ago. I thought all this sounded familiar... <a href="http://http://bemoretraining.com/knowledge/articles/whykettlebells.html">Why Lift Kettlebells?</a>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-68265426736790315012011-10-14T12:34:00.004-04:002011-10-14T12:40:30.691-04:00Art & Strength Grand OpeningAnnouncing the Grand Opening of Art & Strength - Where Strength is an Art Form<br /><br />Where: 4115 Wholesale Club dr, Baltimore, MD, 21236. <br />When: Saturday, October 15 from 12-4pm<br />What: Amazing performances, food, drink, raffle & free stuff<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RYZp5Ss136Q/TphlVQFPJGI/AAAAAAAABY8/_if0yH_xnz8/s1600/GrandOpending_flier_back%2BFINAL.jpg"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o9j5k9GyUuk/TphlPG9nspI/AAAAAAAABYw/MpWuFgAvyIY/s1600/GrandOpending_flier%2BFINAL.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 249px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o9j5k9GyUuk/TphlPG9nspI/AAAAAAAABYw/MpWuFgAvyIY/s320/GrandOpending_flier%2BFINAL.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663387841659908754" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RYZp5Ss136Q/TphlVQFPJGI/AAAAAAAABY8/_if0yH_xnz8/s1600/GrandOpending_flier_back%2BFINAL.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 249px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RYZp5Ss136Q/TphlVQFPJGI/AAAAAAAABY8/_if0yH_xnz8/s320/GrandOpending_flier_back%2BFINAL.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663387947186988130" border="0" /></a>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-61186317057100249452011-09-05T22:07:00.001-04:002011-09-05T22:08:32.073-04:00Coming Soon...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dQWONcBb_Gs/TmWAlwkkjoI/AAAAAAAABYg/ncJ6yMs2Pko/s1600/A%2526S%2Blogo.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 390px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dQWONcBb_Gs/TmWAlwkkjoI/AAAAAAAABYg/ncJ6yMs2Pko/s400/A%2526S%2Blogo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649062693787963010" border="0" /></a>
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<br />Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-19831111861716123192011-06-20T15:52:00.007-04:002011-06-20T16:13:41.121-04:00Got Motivation?<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tYn6CPPjJt8/Tf-pZrL1gcI/AAAAAAAABYI/3B31sT1pHNg/s1600/kyle.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620397118535860674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 259px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tYn6CPPjJt8/Tf-pZrL1gcI/AAAAAAAABYI/3B31sT1pHNg/s400/kyle.bmp" border="0" /></a><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Kyle Maynard, author of the book, “No Excuses” competes in the 2010 Crossfit Games. Kyle was born with a congenital amputation that affected both his arms and legs. To read more about Kyle’s incredible story, visit his website at </span></em><a href="http://www.kyle-maynard.com/"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">www.kyle-maynard.com</span></em></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><div>I realized long ago that you HAVE to workout. The alternative is not acceptable. You can make effort to get stronger or you WILL get fat, weak and sick. Once I understood this obvious truth, motivation has never been something I struggled with.<br /><br />Of course there are times when energy levels lag, stress peaks and life in general just takes priority but for every reason to take time away from your exercise routine there are at least two reasons to do something. That is not to say that you should never take time off, you should – and a week off every few months will do you more good than harm – but you should never get out of the habit of exercising.<br /><br />Have you ever noticed how you feel better on the days you workout? Find that you are more energetic? Creative? The immediate benefits of exercise are unmistakable! Everything is better when you are primed physically – you’re a more productive employee, a more patient parent, you get more restful sleep - and these are just the things that happen the day of! Once you start to string a few of these days into weeks, months and years; you’re a totally different person before long. The thought of not feeling this way is something you don’t want. Motivation is no longer an issue. You might as well consider training as part of your job (a job that pays well and you really like!). </div><br /><br /><div><br />Though if you start to experience the opposite – less energy, lower libido, impatience, and/or problems sleeping – you could be overtraining. Sometimes your motivation and your best intentions can turn against you. There are times when rolling over and going back to bed is the best thing you can do for your training. That’s why it’s important to learn to listen to your body and take scheduled times off. More often than not that extra recovery time will replenish your energy stores and renew your motivation. Expect a good workout and few personal records when you come back.</div></div></div>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-3153729020693211602011-05-08T22:33:00.001-04:002011-05-08T22:35:22.242-04:00York Barbell Strength FestivalOn May 21, 2011 there will be a Strength Festival at York Barbell Museum and USA Weightlifting Hall of Fame in York, PA. There is a full schedule with the main events being a Kettlebells for Warriors workshop (all proceeds benefit the Wounded Warrior Project) and two inductions into the Hall of Fame. Joseph Greenstein (aka The Mighty Atom) and Slim "The Hammerman" Farman will be inducted. I have the honor to be performing a strongman show for their induction. My show and the induction will take place during the lunch hour.<br /><br />Also on the agenda is a USAWA "chain lift" competition and "record breakers" event. There will be martial arts demonstrations, a weightlifting exhibition, Crossfit workouts, grip games, strongman toys, stuff for the kids and a raffle worth thousands of dollars in products and services. All four branches of the US military will be there with a speech being delivered by one of our wounded veterans. <br /><br />This event is going to be big! Last year's event brought in over $5000 for the Wounded Warrior Project and this years event is expected to double, even triple that.<br /><br />I hope to see you there!<br /><br />-DanDan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-50108216097264480102011-05-02T11:26:00.001-04:002011-05-02T11:37:26.251-04:00Spring ForwardA few weeks ago, on one of those unusually warm February days, my brother in-law and I drove past an obese woman jogging on the side of the road. I commented, “That’s awesome.” Apparently, he thought I was making fun of her, as he replied, “Hey, at least she’s trying.” <br /><br />“No, I’m serious, it’s awesome. It brings me great joy to see fat people running. She won’t be fat for long if she keeps that up!” was my exact response.<br /><br />It’s officially spring and this is a time when chubby suburbanites all across the country flood the streets and the gyms to shed off their winter weight in preparation for summer. And you know what? It’s a beautiful thing.<br /><br />I think seasonal exercise habits are a great idea! If you remember last winter I recommended a muscle building phase to coincide with your holiday eating schedule. It makes sense; more muscle requires more calories, and increased calories usually means an increased waistline. So you put a little flab on over the winter – so what?! That’s a small price to pay for enjoying a little holiday gluttony with your family. <br /><br />But now, the weather is warming up and the clothes are coming off. If your butt is bigger than it was the last time you had shorts on, I hope that’s because you’ve been squatting heavy the last couple months and you have well developed glutes. If so, it’ll be that much easier to shed your winter coat and your legs will be that much stronger to do what I’m about to recommend… and that is to get out and run!<br /><br />No gyms, no machines, no non-sense; just you and a pair of running shoes (I recommend <a href="http://www.vibramfivefingers.com">www.vibramfivefingers.com</a>) out in the fresh air. Run your neighborhood, hit the trails or find a good hill to do sprints on. No experience necessary. Just go out and enjoy the weather and be thankful that you can run. <br /><br />Like anything else, start off gradually. Try to establish a habit of running before you attempt to break any records. As soon as you find yourself in a routine, I’d recommend that you start trying to run faster, at least on occasion. Sprints and high intensity intervals. There are many additional benefits associated with higher intensity (increased metabolism, better muscle building, improved work capacity, etc) and by keeping your heart rate elevated you can reap all of the aerobic benefits of longer duration steady-state exercise as well.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-61498042464781906592011-03-07T08:44:00.003-05:002011-03-07T15:00:59.220-05:00Strength Training and Muscle Building<em>“Strength is absolute. It’s unequivocal, you either have it or you don’t. You can call upon it and use it or you cannot.”<br />-Dr. Ken Leistner<br /></em><br />Let’s get one thing straight – strength is always a good thing. Getting stronger is like putting money in the bank, and like money, you can never have too much strength. If you have strength, you will find a time to use it, if you don’t have strength, you will find a time you wish you did.<br /><br />Everybody should be doing some form of strength training. If you are not making an effort to strengthen your body, you will get weaker. Even children learning to walk are on a progressive strength training journey; from crawling, to walking, to running and jumping – kids get stronger. In healthy older adults, the only thing that separates them physically is their muscle and strength; posture, frailty, energy levels and ultimately their ability to live independently are all largely based on strength. Assuming you fall somewhere in between child and senior, you should be training for strength as well, if for no other reason than you’re going to be old one day too! It’s in your best interest to enter into the golden years with some muscle and strength because it’s going to be on a rapid decline after you get into your 50’s.<br /><br />Muscle building is a little bit different than strength training; bigger muscles doesn’t necessarily mean stronger muscles, and getting stronger doesn’t necessarily mean getting bigger. The actual size of a muscle has a lot more to do with non-contractile properties than it does functional strength, and building bigger muscles has a lot more to do with the individual and the way they eat than it does their training alone.<br /><br />Generally speaking, muscle building requires a high calorie, high protein diet with a heavy dose of the male hormone testosterone. The more testosterone you have the more potential you have for muscle building. Women, children and older men will find it very difficult to build muscle. Years of hard training and an animal like appetite is what it takes for the average man with good genetics to build significant muscle, so ladies need not be concerned about “bulking up.”<br /><br />Unfortunately many women are still under the impression that lifting weights will cause them to “bulk up” and they miss the incredible benefits of strength training. Somewhere along the line the idea of “toning” came into vogue which focused on “shaping” a muscle instead of building it and making it stronger. Understand that you cannot shape a muscle other than making it bigger and to “tone” you need more muscle AND less fat. High repetition, light weight, low intensity training is an ineffective way to do either.<br /><br />Take a look at the picture below. All of these women are professional athletes and with the exception of the bodybuilder and the long distance runner (neither the “toned” look most women are after), they all have similar levels of bodyfat. With that in mind, the only difference in “tone” is the amount of muscle they have. The weightlifter, Tara Nott, though certainly muscled, is not as big as the bodybuilder but she is much stronger. She’s the only American to win a gold medal in Olympic weightlifting in the last 50 years and she can lift 220lbs overhead. You can imagine how many years of hard and heavy training she put in at the US Olympic training center to build the muscle she has. It did not come over night, in a couple months or even a year. Tara has been lifting limit weights for over a decade. The bodybuilder, Kim Chizovsky, has been lifting weights for a similar time period but competes in a sport where anabolic steroids (read: testosterone) are not tested for. It’s safe to say that it’s “unnatural” for a woman to build so much muscle.<br /><br />The take home message here is that muscle and strength is not built easy. It takes long hard hours in the gym over a period of years to build either, and the training and dietary regimen is totally different. It’s good to be strong – it makes you harder to kill (all cause mortality). Tone is the absence of fat and the presence of muscle in a relaxed state, and bulking up is not something women should worry about.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.stumptuous.com/why-dont-you-look-like-a-fitness-model"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 438px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 296px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://www.stumptuous.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/si_for_women_photomontage4.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />“Here’s an amazing photomontage that appeared in the unfortunately short-lived Sports Illustrated for Women many years ago. It features a selection of female Olympic athletes from different sports. That’s right — Olympic athletes. You can’t really be in much better shape than this. I think it speaks for itself.” – Mistress Krista of stumptous.com<br />(Click the picture to be directed to Krista’s article “Why Don’t You Look Like a Fitness Model”)Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-41123849154329834212011-02-02T13:45:00.008-05:002011-02-02T14:04:23.011-05:00Resolution Dissolution<a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.luceperformancegroup.com/cp/galleries/633513402041350060/large/63351342139669493517.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 430px;" src="http://www.luceperformancegroup.com/cp/galleries/633513402041350060/large/63351342139669493517.jpg" alt="" border="0" /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves/> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> 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unhidewhenused="false" qformat="true" name="Intense Reference"> <w:lsdexception locked="false" priority="33" semihidden="false" unhidewhenused="false" qformat="true" name="Book Title"> <w:lsdexception locked="false" priority="37" name="Bibliography"> <w:lsdexception locked="false" priority="39" qformat="true" name="TOC Heading"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} </style> <![endif]--> </a><p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It’s February and by now something like 80% of New Years Resolutions have already been broken.<span style=""> </span>I’ve never seen any specific survey results but I’m sure many of these were diet and exercise resolutions that fell short.<span style=""> </span>It’s too bad, and I feel for the people who are really trying to make a difference (although I’d argue that if you didn’t even make it a month you’re not trying hard enough).<span style=""> </span>Habits can be hard to break and lifestyle changes are difficult for many people to make on their own.<span style=""> </span>Of course, a lot of it comes down to how bad you want it.<span style=""> </span>I have little sympathy for the people whose only effort at making change is lip service.<span style=""> </span>Exercise is a participatory activity - you have to get out there and “do” it.<span style=""> </span>Same thing with your diet – don’t cry the blues on your way home from McDonalds – I don’t want to hear it!<span style=""> </span>Either you are ready to take control over your health or you aren’t.</span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Yet still there are others who are ready to take control but just aren’t sure what to do.<span style=""> </span>With all of the information out there, all of the gadgets, all of the programs and all of the people out there trying to make a buck, it’s not hard to see how folks are being led in the wrong direction.<span style=""> </span>I bet a lot of those broken resolutions are because of a lack of results.<span style=""> </span>Let’s get real though, 4 weeks is hardly enough time to see changes in body composition, and I know that’s what most people are looking for.<span style=""> </span>You’d really need to work hard to see results in 4 weeks and the reality is that most people don’t LIKE to train hard, don’t know HOW to train hard or don’t know they HAVE to train hard.</span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Look at any new fitness gadget that hits the shelves at Wal-Mart or makes a debut on late-night infomercials.<span style=""> </span>Almost without exception, they are designed to make exercise easier or more comfortable.<span style=""> </span>This is aiming at people’s natural desire to take the path of least resistance, but this is also aiming in the wrong direction!<span style=""> </span>Training is about making progress!<span style=""> </span>This is why people lift heavier weights and run longer distances.<span style=""> </span>It’s about stepping outside of your comfort zone and making things harder, not easier!<span style=""> </span></span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Getting fit is a very simple process but it is anything but easy.<span style=""> </span>You should be skeptical of anyone claiming otherwise (although eating right actually IS pretty easy).<span style=""> </span>Much of training is really just common sense and the need for progressive resistance is not that hard to figure out.<span style=""> </span>The hard part is committing yourself to progression and make a habit out of pushing your limits.<span style=""> </span></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-style: italic;font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="">“The three great essentials to achieve anything worth while are, first, hard work; second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common sense."</span></span></p> <p class="authorname" style="margin: 6pt 0in 0.0001pt 9.35pt; text-indent: -9.35pt; font-style: italic;font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="">-<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style=""><span style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Thomas Edison</span></span></p>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-59482211449086742852010-10-12T09:53:00.000-04:002010-10-12T09:53:30.420-04:00Progressive Pulls Workout<object style="background-image: url("http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/pAWAop0SfAk/hqdefault.jpg");" height="295" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pAWAop0SfAk?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pAWAop0SfAk?fs=1&hl=en_US" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="295" width="480"></embed></object><br /><br />This was a good workout. Not the heaviest lifting I've done but I feel pretty good about my form. I originally edited this video to look at my pulling technique and how it changed with different exercises and as the weight got heavier. Once I put it all together I just had to put a title and some music to it.<br /><br />I haven't lifted like this in over a year. Just didn't have any desire. I had other things I was focusing on. Now, I've got a goal to deadlift 600 on December 31, 2010 and I am totally fired up about doing heavy barbell work again.<br /><br />Whether or not you are into posting your workouts on the internet, I highly encourage you to video yourself so you can analyze your form, especially on the more technical exercises. You can also ask others who know more than you do to have a look as well. Master RKC <a href="http://kettlebellsecrets.com/">Geoff Neupert</a> was kind enough to point out that I was leaking power in my snatches. Notice how my back rounds as the bar leaves the floor. That's something I missed; I was just happy that I was getting full extension and not bending my arms early (something I've had problems with in the past).<br /><br />As always, I've got some things to work on. I've been practicing the quick lifts on and off for nearly 10 years now and I still have haven't mastered them. Maybe I never will? That's OK, I enjoy working on it and I get stronger in the process.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-88719147051745982352010-09-09T12:19:00.006-04:002010-09-10T12:02:19.283-04:00The 100 Rep Test<span style="font-style: italic;"><blockquote>"100 REP Challenge is the Simple Strength practice of performing 100 Reps everyday. It's up to you what exercises you use and how you divide the reps. The only thing that matters is you get your 100 reps, no matter how, no matter what, everyday!"</blockquote></span>Taken from Rannoch Donald's "The 100 Rep Challenge" Facebook page<br /><br />I don't know about everyday, but I do know about the 100 rep challenge, or the "100 rep test" as I like to call them.<br /><br />What's so special about 100 reps? Nothing, other than it's a three-digit number. It's not much different than 10 or 1000. Who cares? Do whatever you want. Just be sure you time it and seek to improve - that's what makes it a 100 rep test.<br /><br />There are all kinds of 100 rep tests. The Marines do 100 sit ups in 2 minutes, the RKC does 100 snatches in 5 minutes, random guys in their basement are doing 100 push ups as fast as they can.<br /><br />Sometimes the goal isn't even in reps but in weight. 100lbs can be a milestone lift of any exercise for any person who follows the United States customary system (English units). There were oldtime strongmen who used to make their students do 100lb turkish getups before they were allowed to do any other exercise!<br /><br />100lbs in the turkish get up is not that big a deal to an intermediate lifter of average build (which I suppose is why the oldtime strongmen required them). I've been doing 100lb TGU's for years now. Also, for years, I've been hearing about people doing 100 REPS in the TGU. Certainly not as popular is the 100 rep TGU. Everytime I heard anything about that kind of volume I rolled my eyes. I had absolutely NO interest in doing that and could only imagine how boring that would be.<br /><br />I could only imagine. I had no first hand knowledge because I lacked the experience. Yes, I was ignorant.<br /><br />Nothing wrong with being ignorant so long as you eventually move out of it. Without getting too philosophical, the more you learn and the more you do the better, right?<br /><br />Well today I learned what it was like to do 100 reps in the turkish get up. I did 100 reps with the 16kg in 44 minutes. Which doesn't matter at all because nobody cares. There's no military agency or fitness organization testing peoples ability to do 100 turkish get ups. Except me. I'm the random guy in the basement and I'm the only one who knows what it was like to do that workout.<br /><br />I'm willing to bet you don't know what it's like to do 100 reps in the TGU. You're probably like I was, ignorant. You're either thinking, 1) "What's a turkish get up?" 2) "Not worth my time" or 3) "No way, it's too hard!"<br /><br />Here's a tip: it is worth your time and it is hard!<br /><br />If you have done it, congratulations! You basically did 100 sit ups, 100 bridges, 100 lunges and 100 presses - a good workout by anyone's standard! Lots of individual exercises make up the TGU and stringing them together into one balanced and fluid movement is what makes them special.<br /><br />I've honestly never been a much of a fan of TGU's. It's one of those exercises that I know is good for me and even though it offers a lot of benefits, I've never been excited about doing them. I can't say this workout has changed that. If anything, I probably dislike them even more. I do however have a new appreciation for them. I have new insight. I have learned something, if you will. I have learned that this is a VERY difficult workout and once again reinforced that the "100 rep test" can be a great workout, warm up or finisher. It all depends on the difficulty of the exercise that determines if you should do 10, 100 or 1000.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-44736973924491850362010-07-15T13:02:00.005-04:002010-07-15T14:11:35.608-04:00Overhead, off the ground and carriedHi everybody,<br /><br />I just wanted to do a quick post about this last training week.<br /><br />Saturday I did a strongman show at York Barbell for the Kettlebells for Warriors event (a great event put on by <a href="http://www.kettlebellkoncepts.com/">Mike Krivka</a> ) and came home with bunch of cool new training tools!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs140.snc4/37337_434906227358_753332358_5885687_8197489_n.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 570px; height: 427px;" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs140.snc4/37337_434906227358_753332358_5885687_8197489_n.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />150lb pressing stone, two 50lb chains and two 25lb chains. I got a few more things that I'll save for another time. Lets talk about rocks and chains!<br /><br />After the show, and before we went out for my birthday dinner at Fogo de Chao, I had to hit a quick workout. NO WAY am I going to miss the opportunity to precede a red meat buffet with a good workout!<br /><br />It took me three attempts to press the rock but in about 10 minutes I did 3 sets of 3 and went in for a single set of deadlifts at 245 x 20. Cleaned up and had a huge feast with good friends!<br /><br />On Tuesday I was dying to do something with the chains. Once again, I was a little pressed for time so I simply slung the 50lb chains (100lbs) over my shoulders and went for a walk. I walked to the closest hill I knew of and walked up, down and around a graveyard. I'd estimate about a mile in 15 minutes. I felt pretty good the rest of the day.<br /><br />Today I had a little more time and did a workout I've done many times before.<br /><br />Overhead press<br />Pull up<br />Farmers Walk finisher<br /><br />I used a ladder format for the presses & pulls.<br /><br />2, 3, 5 reps each set and matching every press with a pull up.<br /><br />Example:<br />2 reps press, 2 pull ups, 3 reps press, 3 pull ups, 5 reps press, 5 pull ups. Repeat 5 times.<br />Beast farmers walk (106 per hand) for 1/4 mile in 7:45.<br /><br />Great workout! Picked some berries out of the garden and made a protein shake.<br /><br />It just goes to show you that you don't need a lot of time or anything too complicated to get some good training in. I pressed and pulled twice this week, and I did two carries. <br /><br />I hope your training is going well and that you are enjoying the summer!<br /><br />-DanDan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-70501505922483331362010-07-08T15:54:00.002-04:002010-07-08T15:56:33.204-04:00The 3 Step Get Up<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UfOKfJEetyo&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UfOKfJEetyo&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-26036032065133251942010-06-12T16:26:00.000-04:002010-06-12T16:26:37.134-04:0040kg Turkish Get Up<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zCpbx3wFX-c&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zCpbx3wFX-c&hl=en_US&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="344" width="425"></embed></object>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-14208950812102255232010-05-27T12:20:00.001-04:002010-05-27T12:21:52.696-04:00How Grip Training Could Save Your LifeEvery exercise program should contain some element of grip training. With a few simple exercises and 5 minutes of your total workout time, you could strengthen your hands exponentially. You can be far stronger than you probably think is possible in such a short amount of time. Motor learning, neural processes and muscle recruitment play a much larger role in hand strength than training time, muscle size, age or gender. I will discuss those things in a future article. The most compelling argument there is to train your grip is the simple fact that your life could depend on it.<br /><br />In the countless ways there are for people to check out, I can think of at least a few that could be prevented with stronger hands.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Being attacked by another human being. </span> This is actually why I started exercising in the first place. My dad is a martial artist and holds advanced degree blackbelts in several disciplines. You can bet I was taught how to fight and defend myself. As long as I can remember we’ve had free weights, punching bags and grippers laying around the house. Hitting back was encouraged, as was protecting your little brother and your lunch money.<br /><br />The unfortunate reality is that there are people out there that may try to harm you and/or your loved ones. Having strong hands will help you to protect yourself, your belongings and those around you. <br /><br />Think of the role of the hands in self defensive situation. Someone grabs you, tries to steal your purse, jack your car, threatens your child, attacks your friend, whatever; your reaction will probably involve a hand-to-attacker maneuver hopefully thwarting any negative outcome to you and yours. There has been at least two occasions in my adult life where by simply squeezing someones neck I defused an attack (there are also other places that are vulnerable to squeezing, however specifics escape me at the moment). Once was when my soon-to-be wife’s jealous ex-boyfriend charged me, and another was when a drunk started a fight with my friend outside of a pizza shop. On both accounts, I was forced to react to a situation that I did nothing to provoke and in no way could have prevented. I am proud that I “won the fight” but sorry that the situation occurred in the first place. It’s not likely that either encounter was a life or death situation, but you never know. The point is, it was the strength of my hand that stopped the attack.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Being attacked by an animal. </span> Long gone are the days we had to wrestle saber tooth tigers, but everyone knows someone that was bitten by a dog. Strong hands are of little match for a set of sharp teeth, but you could wield a bigger weapon with a pair of mightier mitts. The difference between shaking a stick and swinging a bat could be the difference between life or limb against a rabid dog off his leash.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Natural disaster.</span> Tsunami in Indonesia, hurricane in New Orleans, earthquake in Haiti, flooding in Nashville; did anyone who survived do so simply by “hanging on”? Probably. I don’t know of any specific stories but I know better climbing, holding, digging or swimming could only be a good thing in such a situation. My thoughts and prayers go out to those families who lost loved ones in those tragic events.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Military/Police/Fire/Rescue. </span> You know what your job entails better than I do. No need to say any more.<br /><br />In my opinion, there really is no other better reason to be strong than someones life may depend on it, which is why this article is first in this series. In the few minutes it takes to squeeze a gripper and do a set or two of wrist curls, it’s in your best interest to train your grip. <br /><br />In the next article, How Stronger Hands Means a Stronger Body.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-58778279104937364062010-04-28T21:33:00.000-04:002010-04-28T21:34:57.451-04:00Kettlebell Classes start this week!!!I will be running 3 classes per week this year:<br /><br />M&W @ 6:30pm (Honeygo Run Park)<br />Sat @ 1pm (Belmont Park).<br /><br />Classes begin this Saturday (May 1) for a two week trial.<br /><br /><u><b>10 weeks</b></u><br /><b>once weekly - $150<br />twice weekly - $280<br />unlimited - $390<br /><br /> <u>20 weeks</u><br />once weekly - $280<br />twice weekly - $520<br />unlimited - $720</b><br /><b><br />Drop in class - $20</b>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-43098240440442279782010-04-28T21:29:00.002-04:002010-04-28T21:33:07.405-04:00Muscle Control<img src="file:///Users/dcenidoza/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/moz-screenshot-3.png" alt="" /><img src="file:///Users/dcenidoza/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/moz-screenshot-4.png" alt="" />I recently took a 16 week hiatus from lifting weights. Due to a number of lifestyle changes and re-prioritizing of training goals, it became necessary for me to stop lifting. For approximately 4 months, I did little more than grip work and muscle control practice. When I returned to heavy lifting, I came back stronger. The following is my thoughts and experiences with Muscle Control.<br /><br />What is Muscle Control?<br /><br />Muscle Control (MC) is the targeted action of specific muscles that are under your voluntary control. It is a series of isolated contractions usually performed as an isometric. In other words, it is the ability to flex individual muscles while keeping others relaxed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/images11/ottoarco_therope.gif"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 200px;" src="http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/images11/ottoarco_therope.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />My first introduction to Muscle Control (MC) was when I stumbled across a picture of someone performing “the rope” an abdominal control where a stomach vacuum is held while the rectus abs (6 pack) is contracted. I was amazed that someone could differentiate between abdominal muscles and control them independently from one another. I had never seen any such thing and thought the guy performing it to be some “freak of nature.”<br /><br /><br /><img src="file:///Users/dcenidoza/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/moz-screenshot-5.png" alt="" />That picture led me to a book entitled Muscle Control by a guy named Maxick. The quick and dirty on Maxick is that he was born in 1882 as a sickly child who was so weak he was unable to walk until the age of 5. Under the advice of the doctor and the enforcement of his parents, he spent most of his youth avoiding anything strenuous. In his desire to become stronger he crafted himself a dumbbell, which when his father found, he destroyed, not wanting his son to overexert himself. It was then when Maxick began developing his system of MC. For more information on Maxick or MC visit <a href="http://www.superstrengthbooks.com/" target="_blank">www.superstrengthbooks.com</a><br /><br />MC is simply communication with muscles. You have two commands you can give them, contract or relax, and these commands are equally as important. Every author of MC has stressed themes of relaxation.<br /><br />Relaxation<br /><br />“Relaxation is just as important as contraction, for unless a muscle be supple enough to lie soft when relaxed, real control is out of the question. This applies not only to the particular muscle, but to those surrounding, or those muscles which come into direct contact with, and are governed to a certain extent by, the said muscle. The control of the surround muscle will in turn be hindered by the proximity of a muscle group that will not absolutely relax.” -Maxick<br /><br />“Directly related to muscle control is the ability to completely relax a muscle or groups of muscles. This is also an acquired skill. Learning to relax certain muscle groups can improve performance in sports where speed is essential.” -Jubinville<br /><br />Most people who are reading this are familiar with the Hardstyle philosophy, irradiation and other similar concepts of tension. Terms like “dormant flexion” and “passive relaxation” might seem to be in direct opposition to the idea that “tension equals strength” but lets take a deeper look into tension before we overlook the importance of relaxation in the development of strength.<br /><br />Dr. Mel Siff talks about “non-functional muscle tension,” “spurious tension” and “coordination tension.“ Granted, he was speaking mainly on the topic of flexibility, but in Supertraining he says, “The level of proficiency of the athlete has a marked influence on the reflex ability to of the muscles to contract and relax. Rapidity of both contraction and relaxation increases with level of mastery, with a decrease in relaxation time becoming especially evident.” He then goes on to cite some data from Matveyev, if you’re interested it’s on page 186.<br /><br />Pavel talked about the bilateral deficit in Return of the Kettlebell stating, “You have only so much neural drive or “nerve force” and when you have to spread it out over two limbs it does not go as far.” The same thing goes for two muscles as it does for two limbs. When you focus your neural drive on a single muscle it allows you to contract that muscle harder than if your attention was spread out over a group of muscles.<br /><br />Here is a simple test. Most people can contract their biceps to the point of cramping. Can you still that with braced abs, tightly squeezed glutes and a white knuckle fist?<br /><br />Without relaxing the muscles nearby the one you are contracting, you are hindering the contraction of the working muscle. And by contracting one muscle at a time, you are establishing greater ability to control that muscle.<br /><br />Isolation<br />I have found that by gaining control over individual muscles in isolation, I in turn have better control over those muscles when contracting them with a group of muscles, be it in a lift or whatever.<br /><br />The saying, “press with your lats” means to contract an antagonist muscle while you are pressing. It does not take a scientist to figure that it would be easier to contract your lats if you did not have to worry about pressing a weight overhead. Learning to better control the lats, could only lead to an increased ability to “press with your lats” assuming that technique was helpful to you to begin with. Either way, it’s best to either learn to chew gum or walk first, but not both at the same time.<br /><br />Of course, the practice of isolating the muscles during MC does little good for your real world strength unless you are devoting equal attention to all of your muscles.<br /><br />Here is another test. Can you contract the biceps of your leg as tightly as the one of your arm? If not, you do not exhibit the control over your leg to the degree you do over your arm. Therefore you cannot expect to contract the leg biceps as strongly when you do finally integrate it into a compound movement.<br /><br />It is mentally and physically easier to contract one muscle at a time than it is to contract them in groups. It just takes a little thought practice before you can differentiate them.<br /><br />Movements or muscles or mind?<br /><br />I am no longer sure about the now cliche saying, “Your body knows movements not muscles.” I see no reason that you cannot know both. I understand why people say that, to encourage new trainees to think in terms of movements instead of bodypart muscle building, but if movements are a skill, that makes both muscular contractions and the neural counterpart that drives it a skill as well.<br /><br />I have always been impressed by Pat “Human Vise” Povilaitis ability to close two #3 grippers simultaneously (actually, I am impressed by pretty much anything that Pat does but that is just one example). Pat is one of the strongest men alive and arguably the best steel bender in history. If you have ever seen him bend the look of concentration he has is scary! There is no question that his laser-like focus is at least part of the reason Pat is able to do the things he does. <br /><br />Take note that “focus” and “concentration” are products of thought or mental effort. Another theme frequently written about in MC is “thinking into the muscle.” Unlike resistance training where a trainee could “go through the motions” while paying little attention to what he is actually doing, the practice of MC is impossible without constant uninterrupted thought, or concentration.<br /><br />This is a trait that can and will be developed with MC.<br /><br />With heightened levels of concentration, better body awareness and finer control over individual muscles, you are destined to become stronger.<br /><br />Conclusion<br /><br />I am stronger for practicing muscle control. After my 16 weeks off from weight training, I closed a gripper I had never shut before, I PR’d on a 5 minute snatch test and I deadlifted heavier than I did at the end of my previous cycle.<br /><br />These are not results that I expected. Needless to say I am pleasantly surprised at what I have found and have begun further experiments into MC.<br /><span style="color:#888888;"><br /></span>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-39152502813062138362010-02-16T08:58:00.003-05:002010-02-16T10:12:45.551-05:00Harvard looks at barefoot running<div>Finally some progress on the scientific side of barefoot running...</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu/index.html">http://barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu/index.html</a><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-90067387861438112902010-02-12T14:57:00.002-05:002010-02-12T15:11:32.501-05:00Muscle Control with HinbernI just received these books/courses on Muscle Control in the mail from Bill Hinbern...<div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/muscle_control.html">http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/muscle_control.html</a></div><div><br /></div><div>If you look around the site a bit, you will see that Bill is a publisher of old, out-of-print books.</div><div><br /></div><div>There is a wealth of information written in Iron Game history! We are lucky to live in a time where classic publications such as these are as available as the latest research in exercise science.</div><div><br /></div><div>Personally, even though my degree is in exercise science, I have found much more practical information in books that were written before any science of exercise took place.</div>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-46573109368147330782010-02-11T09:25:00.002-05:002010-02-11T09:51:58.891-05:00Muscle Control with StrongermanIf you got a chance to listen in to Bud Jeffries interview with Pavel on strongerman.com this week you heard some interesting conversation based on a question I posed to Pavel about muscle control. If you are unfamiliar with muscle control, here's a clip of some very advanced abdominal control...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/KyljiZ6rcl8&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/KyljiZ6rcl8&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This is something I've been working on lately. In part out of interest, and in part out of necessity. In the last few weeks, I've been short on both time and energy to put into training. Muscle control and isometric exercise has been a convenient way for me to stay active. Shoveling snow (which we have about 36" of right now) keeps me active too, but I wouldn't say that it's convenient.<br /><br />Anyway, I am being featured on the Strongerman teleseminar next week and I'd like to talk more about muscle control. Logan Christopher, the man behind the scenes at strongerman.com, has some experience with muscle control too and I'm looking forward to continuing the discussion. For details on the tele-seminar (it will be Tuesday Feb 16 @ 8pm EST) go to <a href="http://www.strongerman.com/dancenidoza/">http://www.strongerman.com/dancenidoza/</a> and to check out Logan and some of his feats go to <a href="http://www.legendarystrength.com/">http://www.legendarystrength.com/</a>Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-48117728500631410772009-12-14T20:56:00.004-05:002009-12-14T22:58:55.993-05:00Meet the Natives<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uBay9eiay_w/SycHzTAcMWI/AAAAAAAABVs/BON0lM7SKso/s1600-h/meet_natives.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uBay9eiay_w/SycHzTAcMWI/AAAAAAAABVs/BON0lM7SKso/s400/meet_natives.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415305654793154914" border="0" /></a><br />Last night I watched a few episodes of the Travel Channel's "Meet the Natives". This is a reality show I can get in to! I found it to be very entertaining and I think we could learn a lot from these natives.<br /><br />The show is about 5 natives from the south pacific island of Tanna who come to America to spread their message of peace & happiness. As you can see in the picture, these guys are "deep country" natives -- no electricity, no running water, I'm not sure if they even have a written language! Anyway, these native ambassadors stay with a host family in 5 different cities for a week each. Talk about a culture shock! The first episode takes the men to Montana where they experience the life of a "cowboy."<br /><br />It's interesting to see how these natives react to the ways of a western cattle ranch. (Keep in mind that these guys come from a hunter and gatherer society on an island that is 12 miles wide.) After they get over the vastness of this Montana operation and are explained that it is because of a business as to why these people own 5000 cows, they are quick to ask why the cows are being fed "dead grass". One of the elders tells a ranch hand that the cow will taste better if it is fed grass, and that grass contains vital nutrients which the cow will die without. I suspect these beef herders know this already -- I have no doubt they have heard the terms "free range" and "grass fed." Whether or not they know about the health hazards that the cows face when they are fed "dead food" doesn't matter, because they have antibiotics that they give to the cows regardless if they need it or not. And this also concerns the natives. Sam, the tribes medicine man, asks about the chemical injections that the cows receive and does not hesitate to express his worry that the chemicals will ruin his body if he eats the cow.<br /><br />This is what I'm talking about when I say we could learn from these guys. It's amazing that they intuitively know these things. How far have we come from this kind of natural knowledge?<br /><br />In another episode the tribesmen are in Illinois helping to cook Thanksgiving dinner. They are in awe at the size of the turkey -- its the biggest they have ever seen -- that's because the birds on their island are not grown in cages, force fed and given growth inducing hormones. It's all good until their host puts the turkey in a plastic cooking bag. The chief tells her of his concern of the plastic melting and making him sick, but she assures him that it is a special plastic that will not melt. Admittedly, I know nothing about this practice (or cooking turkeys for that matter) but I do know that everything has a melting point and that plastic doesn't need to physically melt to give off carcinogenic properties. Apparently the chief knows this as well. He also knows that the canned sweet potatoes they are serving are a "lifeless food" as he tells his compadre, "we don't know if it has been in the can for a month or for a year."<br /><br />Fast forward to Orange County California and the natives are immersed in a highly artificial environment. From the landscape to the people, there's a lot of fakes. Nothing personal about the host family, they seem to be genuinely good people, who are genuinely overly concerned about the way they look. Personal grooming is one thing, and the natives seem to enjoy the mud bathes and the pedicures, but when Kuai is asked if he would like to look 10 years younger during his facial, he says, "No, I would like to live longer." And that captures the way they think.<br /><br />The OC episode concludes with what seems to be the most foreign concept for the natives -- a botox party. The medicine man has many questions for the doctor who comes to smooth out the faces. Did you know botox was a diluted form of e coli? I didn't. Anyway, it was funny to hear the natives talk amongst themselves as the facial injections took place.<br /><br />"She takes this youth medicine to smooth her face."<br /><br />"But what about her inside? Does it reverse her life there?"<br /><br />The men cover their eyes in disbelieve and misunderstanding. I can't say that I feel any differently. The chief draws a useful analogy saying, "The sun will set. You cannot change it. Your blood will know what time it is."<br /><br />In many ways I envy these men. They are knowledgeable about the bare necessities of life and know little about frivolous luxuries that they can do without. They are not burdened with a media driven public perception, the spoils of vanity or the idea of keeping up with the Jones'. Their food is fresh, clean and full of life. Their culture does not revolve around <span>the</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> root of all evil</span>.<br /><br />Of course there is no way would I trade my life in America for the life that these guys lead on the island. But I don't need to live in the stone age to take a lesson from the natives. The take home message is this: we should eat and exercise in a manner that closely resembles that of primitive man. This is how we prospered physically for thousands of years and nothing has changed.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-34497513016435884312009-12-05T19:53:00.004-05:002009-12-06T22:18:21.863-05:00Red Nail certificationI certified on bending the red nail today under the witness of Marty Gallagher and company. The bend was done at his home in conjunction with what he called "Deadlift Woodstock." 10 people in a snowy garage in Pennsylvania, training the deadlift and feeding on free range protein and natural cooking. It was a good day!<br /><br />My official certification was really only a fragment of the awesomeness of my day. It started with <a href="http://www.charmcitykettlebells.com/">Sandy Sommer, RKC</a> picking me up at 8am and us making a quick stop to pick up Dr. Chris Hardy. Much of the conversation revolved around primal eating habits that we have strayed away from since leaving a hunter & gatherer lifestyle -- a topic that I am extremely interested in and believe in the benefits of. Anyway, Dr. Hardy is not only a medical doctor who specializes in nutrition, occupational & musculoskeletal medicine but he is a strength & conditioning specialist, Lieutenant Commander in the US Navy and Chief Resident at Johns Hopkins... yeah... and I got to ride with him and ask him questions. Nice!<br /><br />Once we arrived at Marty's we promptly went out to the garage and started training the deadlift under his watchful eye. Marty is champion powerlifter and trainer of champions and there is not a more qualified person on this side of North America to learn how to press, squat or deadlift from. I topped out at 470 with more in the tank and left the garage with some significant changes to my technique that I'm going to start working on immediately.<br /><br />After the workout we headed into the house where I bent the red nail in accordance with the rules taking exactly 17 seconds. Then it was 3 more nails in 52 seconds. I hearted a horseshoe for Marty's wife and rolled a frying pan for the man himself. We talked a little grip amongst the group and then headed into the kitchen where we dined on a meal like no other.<br /><br />On the menu was grassfed lamb, beef and free range chicken. Everything we ate was was organic, healthy and delicious. I have a new appreciation for natural eating, especially after listening to Dr. Hardy talk. It's not as hippie and tree hugger as I once thought it to be. I've been keen on this ever since I read the Anti-Estrogenic Diet and the author drew comparisons between pollutants in our food and they're estrogenic effects on the body. We've decided to make a dietary overhaul in our own home and go organic... I'll talk more about that later. Let's just say that I haven't had that good of food as I had at Marty's for a long time, and possibly ever.<br /><br />A good day.Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-440585371498042253.post-76523537972444042622009-10-28T08:31:00.008-04:002009-11-06T19:59:44.888-05:00Hardstyle Kettlebell CertificationIn the past two months I have started a new website, tiled my parents bathroom, given 3 speeches at Toastmasters, read 4 books, and my wife and I had a baby. I've been busy. No time to blog. But I wanted to get this out there...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pjtra.com/t/Qz5DQklDRT5KQUdGPkdHQko"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 233px; height: 203px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uBay9eiay_w/SuhKZr9e9RI/AAAAAAAABVg/E7mrUb4h4Zg/s400/HKCInstructor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397645958561330450" border="0" /></a><br />The Hard-Style Kettlebell Certification is coming to Baltimore hosted by yours truly! My friend and Senior RKC Doug Nepodal is coming in from California to teach the core HKC drills next year on September 4, 2010. There has been rave reviews from the first HKC held last month and knowing what Doug can do with a kettlebell and an unsuspecting victim, you can expect a high quality workshop!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pjtra.com/t/Qz5DQklDRT5KQUdGPkdHQko">Dragon Door's HKC Instructor Workshops- Enter the lucrative world of the certified kettlebell trainerâ��and attract more clients for a better income. How to master the essentials of kettlebell liftingâ��and dramatically boost your power. Register Now!</a><img src="http://www.pjtra.com/i/Qz5DQklDRT5KQUdGPkdHQko" height="1" width="1" border="0" />Dan Cenidozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05482813962692672211noreply@blogger.com1